Patrick Sindu, the outspoken head of the Consumers Association of Sabah and Labuan Federal Territory (Cash), will continue to speak out on consumerism and politics in spite of mounting pressure from agitated Sabah Umno leaders for him to resign and form his own political party.

"While some may want to see NGOs restricted to their respective spheres of activity as a norm, Cash strongly believe that our president has been justified in his recent role as spokesman for society at large, as far as consumerism is concerned," said secretary-general Joshua Kong at a press conference over the weekend in Kota Kinabalu.

Sindu has been vocal on consumer-related issues, politics and problems created by illegal immigrants. However, his critics have accused him of "straying into politics".

Kong defended Sindu's right to speak out, saying: "Cash believes we are well within the boundaries of consumerism, as we don't neglect our areas of concern over price and quality of basic consumer items.

"In Malaysia, where you can't separate race and religion from politics, how can anyone really separate consumerism from politics when both are part and parcel of life? There is no black and white demarcation between consumerism and politics - there is bound to be an overlap."

He said he believed Cash did not step beyond its jurisdiction when Sindu, who is also a local councillor, urged Chief Minister Musa Aman to reactivate the provision on the six nominated state assemblypersons.

This was "not with the intention to oppose the very strong state Barisan Nasional (BN) government".

However, the movement feels that the legislative assembly - as elected custodians of the people's rights, especially in the context of local consumerism - had failed miserably in several ways.

Thus, the assembly needs what Kong called "some extra voices to boost its august image... in line with modern perceptions in a globalised society".

Like any organisation, the strengths and weaknesses of the assembly have to be addressed periodically. In this particular case, it is deemed necessary to nominate six new faces with capability in different areas of expertise, Kong said.

It was for this reason that Cash suggested that six assemblypersons be appointed to represent such bodies as Cash (consumerism), Sepa (environment), Council of Churches (spiritual), USBO (ethnic minorities), pensioners (aged group) and charities (needs).

"Such minority groups would provide a major voice dimension to serve the people better. That cannot be construed as politicking but rather as an essential ingredient for a better environment in meeting the needs of consumers at large."

Abject performance

Kong said Cash would continue to pursue its role in areas of pressing needs like the issuance of identity cards to foreigners, land issues, job opportunities, and value of goods and services insofar as these affect the security of consumers which, in turn, can impact on the nation's sovereignty.

He said the Consumers Association of Penang had recently organised a Conference on Climate Change in Penang .

"At first look, this has nothing to do with complaints on consumer items. The conference resolved to urge the government and the people to be more pro-active, which is the essence of politics," he pointed out.

Kong queried why some Sabah politicians are so worried about Cash being vocal in current socio-economic affairs.

"The recent outburst by worried politicians is nothing new in Sabah as the state lies at the bottom of the nation in almost all indicators,' he added.

"If BN elected representatives are performing to expectations, nobody - even Cash if it becomes a political party - can unseat them."